The Government of Western Australia has committed to invest $40 million into accelerating critical minerals exploration in the state, ensuring it is well-placed to grasp economic opportunities as the world works towards a net zero future.
The Sustainable Geoscience Investments package, included in the 2023-24 State Budget, addresses the ever-increasing demand for critical minerals used in technologies such as electric vehicles, energy storage and solar panels.
WA currently accounts for half of global lithium production and is a major exporter of nickel, cobalt, manganese and rare earth elements.
However, research shows the world’s known reserves of critical minerals cannot meet future needs.
The Sustainable Geoscience Investments package will build on other initiatives to facilitate green energy projects, such as the Green Energy Assessment Unit, Future Battery Industry Strategy, Diversification Leases for large scale renewable energy projects, and sustained investment in hydrogen.
Since the mid-2010s, WA has attracted more than $9 billion of investment for a range of battery and critical minerals projects, including the establishment of globally significant mineral processing facilities.
The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (CME) Chief Executive Officer Rebecca Tomkinson said the investment will help support the essential role that WA resources sector is playing in the both the state and the globe’s zero emissions future.
“Western Australia’s resources sector provides the foundation for the innovation and development of the future technologies that aim to make our lives and our workplaces safer, smarter and cleaner.
“There is enormous opportunity for Western Australia to have a world leading, sustainable, value adding critical mineral sector.”
Western Australia hosts an abundance of critical minerals that are vital for the global transition to net zero emissions by 2050, including producing 57 per cent of the world’s lithium, along with battery-grade chemical products such as nickel sulfate. There is more in the pipeline, including rare earths processing capacity.
